[1][2] Reese was already well known in the journalism field because she wrote a segment for the Commercial Gazette called Cara's Column.

Cara Reese's notes and sketches about the disaster in Johnstown later were published in the Pittsburgh Dispatch with the headline “WIPED OUT BY WATER.

Reese traveled to and reported on other natural disasters from unsafe locations, drawing criticism from members of the Women's Press Club of Pittsburgh, of which she was a founding member, for putting herself in danger and going to places considered unsuitable for women.

All of her reporting from flooded, muddy terrain was done wearing the long skirts and petticoats of the day.

[3][4][5][6] Cara Reese was a staff writer on several Pittsburgh newspapers, was a regular contributor to Good Housekeeping Magazine, wrote several books, and was an accomplished public speaker who represented the women of Western Pennsylvania at world congresses and meetings of the General Federation of Women's Clubs.